Jordanian foreign minister Abdel-Ilah Khatib said Saturday that Jordan stands behinds the Palestinians in next week's three-way summit in the United States.

Khatib's remarks came after a meeting with Palestinian president Yasser Arafat in Gaza.

Jordan "supports the rights of the Palestinian people" and the creation of "an independent Palestinian state," Khatib told reporters after the meeting.

The foreign minister gave Arafat a message from King Abdullah II reaffirming "the continuing Jordanian support for the Palestinian positions" on the peace process.

Khatib met the Palestinian second-in-command, Mahmud Abbas, in Amman Friday to discuss the summit, which starts Tuesday at the Camp David presidential retreat between Arafat, Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, and US President Bill Clinton.

Barak is scheduled to meet King Abdullah in Amman on Saturday evening - GAZA CITY (AFP)